In the field of orthopedics, various techniques are employed for holding together parts of a fractured bone during the healing process. However, prior to the fixation of the bone fragments, it is first required that the fracture be reduced, that is, the various bone fragments or pieces must be repositioned in their proper relative arrangement before the fractured bone can be fixed or stabilized for healing. U.S. Pat. No. 4,103,683 generally refers to reduction of a fracture which is maintained with suitable bone clamps.
Another reduction technique is illustrated and described in U.S. Pat. No. 4,127,119 which includes upper and lower pin holder assemblies that have a ring-like configuration and can be positioned about the limb to be reduced. Bone penetrating pins are secured to the appropriate pin holders in these assemblies. A solely external fracture reduction system is described in U.S. Pat. No. 3,850,166. However the apparatus of this '166 patent is intended for use only for lower limb fractures. Moreover, it is not suitable for complicated fractures which result in disorientation of the bone fragments.
Still yet another fracture reduction apparatus is described in U.S. Pat. No. 4,628,922 which illustrates single-sided fixation of a bone fracture which requires fixation pins to be inserted through the bone fragments. Although this device is said to be able to reduce the fracture, it involves a relatively complicated procedure in that movement of one component will affect the orientation of any other component. Furthermore, rotation is limited in view of the skin and tissue through which the pins penetrate.
The use of elastic nails is described in U.S. Pat. No. 4,467,983. In the example illustrated, the nails are passed into the medullary canal through a hole in the bone and can be rotated so as to reduce the fractured femoral head. However, these nails at the least are not convenient for measurement of the final nail to be inserted for fixation of the fracture. Furthermore, these nails require special configurations as well as elastic portions, as noted, in order to permit their use in the reduction process. Since the bone hole serves as a fulcrum point, these nails are not capable of fine adjustment or ease of use within the medullary canal.
We have invented a tool for reducing fractures and particularly for reduction of a fractured femur which overcomes the limitations noted above. The fracture reduction tool of the present invention is useful in reducing the fracture, in passing the reaming guide wire and in measuring the length of the nail or rod to be using in ultimately fixating the fracture. These procedures are not collectively available with any of the aforementioned prior art devices. Moreover, the tool of the present invention can also be used for different lengths of bone and accordingly avoids the need for tools of various sizes.